Hot Creek

A soothing soak, fabulous fly-fishing and an up-close look at one of California's most intriguing geothermal areas are highlights of a hike along Hot Creek near Mammoth Lakes. If hot springs, hiking and trout aren't reasons enough for a visit, Hot Creek has one more attraction: a long hiking season. Hot Creek Trail is the very last Mammoth-area path to be snow-covered in winter and the very first to be snow-free in spring.

A favorite fishing hole Wow! My favorite columnist went to my favorite place - Hot Creek Ranch ["No Frills, Just Fishing Thrills" by Chris Erskine, July 15]. I did have to chuckle when he said to book early because it fills up fast. Reservations are usually made two years in advance, unless there are cancellations, and the same people, like my husband and me, go year after year. When we were there in June, there were only a couple of days available this season, and a man who had caught a 25-plus-inch trout was booking them hoping to catch it again.

The fishing interests have won a big round in their fight to stop the construction of a 10-megawatt geothermal plant on Hot Creek in the Eastern Sierra. Judge Edward Denton of Mono County Superior Court ruled that the county supervisors had failed to follow guidelines of the California Environmental Quality Act when they issued a permit to the Bonneville Pacific Corp. last year to build the plant. The supervisors' vote, incidentally, was 3-2, and the two who voted against the permit remain.

This isn't one of those cushy Fish-Carltons like those über-expensive Montana trout resorts. Hot Creek Ranch in Mammoth Lakes has nine no-frills cabins whose biggest amenity is one of the sweetest spring-fed creeks you'll ever see, right out your front door. You and other guests will have a two-mile stretch of it all to yourselves. Isn't that the ultimate VIP perk, anyway? Plus, it's an easy five-hour drive from L.A. The bed As noted, nothing fancy. The two-room cabins come in various configurations, but most sleep four if you include sleeper-couches.

The knees are gone from Bob Brooks' jeans, a condition attributed to the fishing technique he advocates at Hot Creek Ranch. Especially at 6-feet-4, he has to crawl to sneak up on the trout. "If we had walked up to the edge, we'd have never seen any of this," he says, peeking through the grass to watch browns and rainbows rising to pluck tiny insects off the surface. "Even by crawling in, we spooked one fish."

An agreement between California and a private foundation spares the Hot Creek trout hatchery near Mammoth Lakes from crippling budget cuts. The state Department of Fish and Game will continue to operate the Owens Valley facility and fund 60% of its operation under the agreement reached Dec. 7. The Hot Creek Trout Hatchery Foundation and Mono County will contribute fuel, fish chow and items worth $142,000 per year. The hatchery provides 60% of the trout caught in the state.

Even after trout season ended in the Eastern Sierra last week, when the campsites were empty and the tackle stores closed, certain people were catching fish on Hot Creek as fast as they could count them. Wading the little stream three abreast, they were collecting as many as 2,000 trout a day, hardly able to contain their excitement. "There he is!" "Go get him." "Behind you." "Got him." "Big one!"

A favorite fishing hole Wow! My favorite columnist went to my favorite place - Hot Creek Ranch ["No Frills, Just Fishing Thrills" by Chris Erskine, July 15]. I did have to chuckle when he said to book early because it fills up fast. Reservations are usually made two years in advance, unless there are cancellations, and the same people, like my husband and me, go year after year. When we were there in June, there were only a couple of days available this season, and a man who had caught a 25-plus-inch trout was booking them hoping to catch it again.

This isn't one of those cushy Fish-Carltons like those über-expensive Montana trout resorts. Hot Creek Ranch in Mammoth Lakes has nine no-frills cabins whose biggest amenity is one of the sweetest spring-fed creeks you'll ever see, right out your front door. You and other guests will have a two-mile stretch of it all to yourselves. Isn't that the ultimate VIP perk, anyway? Plus, it's an easy five-hour drive from L.A. The bed As noted, nothing fancy. The two-room cabins come in various configurations, but most sleep four if you include sleeper-couches.

In a setting known for its burbling creeks and snowy peaks--and increasingly for its luxury condos and golf courses--anglers are accusing the town of Mammoth Lakes of a water grab that will allow the resort community to grow at the expense of a beloved trout stream. Only two miles long, Hot Creek holds a special place in the hearts of anglers in California.

An agreement between California and a private foundation spares the Hot Creek trout hatchery near Mammoth Lakes from crippling budget cuts. The state Department of Fish and Game will continue to operate the Owens Valley facility and fund 60% of its operation under the agreement reached Dec. 7. The Hot Creek Trout Hatchery Foundation and Mono County will contribute fuel, fish chow and items worth $142,000 per year. The hatchery provides 60% of the trout caught in the state.

In a setting known for its burbling creeks and snowy peaks--and increasingly for its luxury condos and golf courses--anglers are accusing the town of Mammoth Lakes of a water grab that will allow the resort community to grow at the expense of a beloved trout stream. Only two miles long, Hot Creek holds a special place in the hearts of anglers in California.

A soothing soak, fabulous fly-fishing and an up-close look at one of California's most intriguing geothermal areas are highlights of a hike along Hot Creek near Mammoth Lakes. If hot springs, hiking and trout aren't reasons enough for a visit, Hot Creek has one more attraction: a long hiking season. Hot Creek Trail is the very last Mammoth-area path to be snow-covered in winter and the very first to be snow-free in spring.

The knees are gone from Bob Brooks' jeans, a condition attributed to the fishing technique he advocates at Hot Creek Ranch. Especially at 6-feet-4, he has to crawl to sneak up on the trout. "If we had walked up to the edge, we'd have never seen any of this," he says, peeking through the grass to watch browns and rainbows rising to pluck tiny insects off the surface. "Even by crawling in, we spooked one fish."

Even after trout season ended in the Eastern Sierra last week, when the campsites were empty and the tackle stores closed, certain people were catching fish on Hot Creek as fast as they could count them. Wading the little stream three abreast, they were collecting as many as 2,000 trout a day, hardly able to contain their excitement. "There he is!" "Go get him." "Behind you." "Got him." "Big one!"

The fishing interests have won a big round in their fight to stop the construction of a 10-megawatt geothermal plant on Hot Creek in the Eastern Sierra. Judge Edward Denton of Mono County Superior Court ruled that the county supervisors had failed to follow guidelines of the California Environmental Quality Act when they issued a permit to the Bonneville Pacific Corp. last year to build the plant. The supervisors' vote, incidentally, was 3-2, and the two who voted against the permit remain.

Saving a fish hatchery from the fryer, the state Department of Fish and Game on Friday announced plans to keep a Mono County trout factory open despite budget cuts. The Hot Creek Hatchery produces most of the eggs for other hatcheries as well as 250,000 pounds of trout annually for many popular eastern Sierra fishing holes. The hatchery lost four of its staffers, and its budget was pared by half to $360,000.

The Eastern Sierra trout season has been closed for more than six weeks, but some might find a trip to Diaz Lake worthwhile. One of only a few year-round fisheries in the region, Diaz Lake, off Highway 395 east of Lone Pine, will receive a bonus plant of 500 two-pound rainbow trout that had been used as brood stock at the Department of Fish and Game's Hot Creek Hatchery in Mammoth Lakes.